


How Do I Say "I Love You"?

by MermaidMayonnaise



Category: Fringe (TV)
Genre: Alternate Olivia Dunham (Mentioned), F/M, Fluff, Fringe needs more fanfics, How Do I Tag, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-10
Updated: 2018-07-10
Packaged: 2019-06-08 02:27:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15233328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MermaidMayonnaise/pseuds/MermaidMayonnaise
Summary: Olivia and Peter talk some things out. Takes place after the episode "Marionette".Honestly, I just wrote this because this didn't happen in the show and I felt like it needed to be written. Hopefully I did it justice.





	How Do I Say "I Love You"?

“Peter?”

“Yeah, Liv?”

Olivia hefted herself into a sitting position. She and Peter were lying next to each other on her bed. After their most recent case, the one Walter called ‘Marionette’, she had done some thinking.

“What I said earlier to you… It wasn’t fair.”

Peter was silent for a second, obviously flashing back. “What do you mean?”

“When I… When I said to you that you should have noticed that Fauxlivia wasn’t me. I mean, she is genetically me, but…” she paused, and her voice broke. “Peter, how  _ didn’t _ you notice?”

Peter stared up at the ceiling. Quietly, he said, “The thing is, Liv, I did. There were these changes, these minute differences that weren’t there before. I just- I assumed that what you’d gone through on the other side… It changed you. It changed all of us. Honestly, I didn’t know what to think.”

“But you slept with her… And you thought that it was me. H-how could you not notice?”

He sighed and took a moment to collect his thoughts. “Liv, I’m started to think that people see what they want to see. In this case, I guess I thought that it was you. I had no reason to think otherwise.” 

He sat up with a groan and looked at her. “I’m explaining this so badly. Liv, can’t you see?” Peter suddenly looked pained, agitated. “I love you, and I wanted to show you. Fauxlivia, the fake,” he spat out that word, “was just there instead of you. I didn’t know… I didn’t…” He put his head in his hands.

After a second or two, he felt her gaze on him. He looked up fearfully, waiting to see rejection in her eyes. Instead, he saw confusion, but a faint smile spread across her face. 

“What?”

“That was… that was the first time you said that you love me.”

A faint blush spread across his cheeks, but he held her gaze.

“I have something to say, too,” Olivia whispered. “When I first went to get you, from Iraq- to be able to get access to Walter, remember? That was when I first saw you.” She paused. “All of a sudden, this sounds very melodramatic.”

Peter smiled at her, truly smiled, and Olivia felt her cheeks warm. “Please, by all means, continue.”

She shakily cleared her throat. “Anyway, it was like out a scene from a movie. Except I still loved John at the time.” A pause, and she looked down at the bed. “Suffice to say, I had a few negative thoughts and you and your personality, all of which I assumed at a moment’s glance.

“But, for once in my life, I was wrong. And I’m so happy I was. Peter, you really are exceptional. You’re kind, you’re witty, you’re thoughtful… I’m so incredibly glad I met you that day.”

She gathered her courage, and met his eyes. “One of my problems is that I keep people at arm’s length. It’s easier if they never get close. You’re like that too; it’s one of the ways that we’re alike.”

Olivia took a shaky breath. “With everyone else I’ve been with, there’s always been something off. Kind of like it’s forced. But it hasn’t been like that with you, never. Saying that I love someone has never been a challenge. No- not a challenge, more like a personal wall that I have to knock down. When I get scared, I subconsciously build up those walls.

“And Peter… I was scared of saying those words to you. Not because they weren’t true, but because of what comes next. What if one of us gets hurt? I just- just want us to be happy…”

She took his hand, blushing as she looked down. “I’m rambling.”

Peter held her against his chest, and his chin rested on her head. “It’s okay,” he told her.

Olivia pulled away. “No, it’s not. I’m not finished,” she said as turned to face him again. “I was scared, once. But not anymore. You and I- I think- no, I’m sure- that we’re meant to be together.”

Peter smiled at her, remembering the brush of her hair against his cheek when she had told him that, long ago.

“So, Peter?”

“Yeah?” 

Olivia looked up, and her eyes were full of tenderness. 

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! The feels were strong with this one...
> 
> I'm an author/artist/musician- so of course I live on validation and comments make my day! :P


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